“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty”(Revelation 1:8).
Read that again… slowly. Notice that God declares three truths. He is Omniscient. He is Omnipresent. He is Omnipotent.
Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet. Omega is the last. God is the A and the Z. All knowledge is conveyed through the letters of the alphabet; thus God’s designation of Himself as the Alpha and the Omega affirms that He has all knowledge.
This phrase, which appears at the first of the book, is repeated at the last of the book. God knows everything from the beginning to the end. The All-Knowing One proclaims, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Revelation 22:13). “Our Lord is great, vast in power; His understanding is infinite” (Psalm 147:5). There is nothing, from beginning to end, that escaped God’s attention. He knows. Everything.
He is Omniscient and He is Omnipresent. The second part of verse eight says, He is “the one who is, who was, and who is to come” (Revelation 1:8).
Isaiah used similar words. “This is what the Lord, the King of Israel and its Redeemer, the Lord of Armies, says: I am the first and I am the last. There is no God but me” (Isaiah 44:6) and “I am he; I am the first, I am also the last” (Isaiah 48:12).
John also used comparable phrases repeatedly. “Grace and peace to you from the one who is, who was, and who is to come…” (Revelation 1:4). “Write to the angel of the church in Smyrna: Thus says the First and the Last, the one who was dead and came to life…” (Revelation 2:8). “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end”(Revelation 21:6).
Almighty God transcends time and space. He is always everywhere… everywhere always. He is in the past, He is present, and at the same time, He is already in the future.
With this miraculous attribute in mind, Heaven worships the Omnipresent One. “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God, the Almighty, who was, who is, and who is to come” (Revelation 4:8). “We give you thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign” (Revelation 11:17). “You are just, the Holy One, who is and who was, because you have passed judgment on these things” (Revelation 16:5).
He is Omniscient, He is Omnipresent, and finally and forever, He is Omnipotent… “the Almighty.”
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty”(Revelation 1:8).
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